Disclaimer: No, nothing from National Treasure is mine. Everything else is.

A/N: Hey! Finals are over!!!!!!!! So, I'll probably be able to update more quickly now. Thanks for your patience. This chapter will have a slightly different feel to it, because I was trying to figure out how to add mystery, adventure, and finally treasure into the story somehow, and this is the introduction to that. Again, none of this was originally going to happen, but it just turned out that way. Hope you enjoy! Warm thanks to momiji'sunusedhalo, Lo, fantomfairy, daisyduke80 (thank you for the idea. Please send the video! I could probably use the song later.), Miss Fenway, Harm Marie, Hobbit-Luvr, Gamine Madcap, Halo, and Majestik Moose for your wonderful reviews. Hope you like this chapter!

Chapter Three

Ben slowly opened his eyes when a bright light hit them, and he was startled to see that he had fallen asleep leaning against the headrest of Riley's bed. The only thing was, the techie wasn't beside him. He sat up quickly as a feeling of panic rose within him, noticing that it was already after nine in the morning. Where was Riley?

The treasure hunter quickly jumped off of the bed and rushed into his own room, seeing that Abigail was also gone. Ben then ran down the stairs two at a time, stopping with surprise when he heard a sarcastic comment.

"Are you always that loud in the morning?"

Ben walked into the kitchen and saw that Riley was sitting cross-legged on the counter, a glass of milk beside him and a few chocolate chip cookies in his hand. "Do you always sit on the counter and have milk and cookies in the morning?" he countered.

"No," Riley replied casually, dunking one of the cookies in the milk. "Only after a nightmare. Dad always used to give Dustin and I milk and cookies if we had a bad dream. He said that it would make them go away."

Ben's face saddened when he thought of what had happened only a couple of hours earlier. Riley hadn't told him what the nightmare had been about, but it must have been terrible. "Did you get any more sleep?" he asked.

Riley shook his head. "No. I couldn't after…" His answer trailed off. "I was going to wake you, but you looked so peaceful so I left you alone. Abi is grocery shopping by the way."

"Well, milk and cookies aren't the best breakfast that you could have," Ben told him, moving to the refrigerator and opening it. "What would you like? Pancakes, waffles, eggs…"

"French toast?" Riley said hopefully.

Ben smiled. "French toast it is," he replied.

Riley jumped off the counter and moved to the sink, beginning to wash out his now empty milk glass. "Ben, could I ask you a favor?"

Confused, Ben looked over his shoulder at his best friend. "Sure, Riley," he said as he began making the French toast. "What is it?"

"I was wondering if you could bring me to Andy's Funeral Home at noon," Riley replied softly, now drying the glass and inspecting it for smudges. "Dustin and I are going to make the funeral arrangements today."

"Isn't it a little soon?" Ben wondered. "Your father died… what, about six hours ago?"

Riley sighed. "It was Dustin's idea," he explained as he put the glass away. "He wants to get it taken care of as soon as possible. I didn't know what else to do, so I agreed."

Ben's eyes narrowed. Making funeral plans so hastily for a father who practically raised both of his sons on his own seemed strange to him. What was the hurry?

"Can you take me or not?"

"Yeah, Riley. Of course," Ben muttered, slightly surprised by the younger man's impatience. Then again, his whole world had just been turned upside down because of the sudden death of his father, and he had only gotten about two hours of sleep at the most. He really shouldn't have been that surprised.

Soon, Ben and Riley were sitting at the kitchen table, silently eating their French toast. The older man kept a close eye on his friend, able to tell that there was definitely something off about him. "Riley… you're not looking forward to meeting with your brother today, are you?" he suddenly asked.

Riley was caught off guard by the question. "No, not really, Ben," he answered, not meeting his best friend's gaze.

"Any reason why?"

The techie sighed and removed his glasses, rubbing his eyes with his fingers. "If you had a nightmare where your own brother kills your dad, you wouldn't be too keen to see him either," Riley muttered.

"You had a nightmare where your brother killed your dad?" Ben was horrified.

"Yeah," Riley said with a small laugh. "I mean, I know it didn't happen, but…"

"It can still be traumatizing," Ben interrupted sternly, yet his voice was full of concern. "Are you sure you want to go through with this, Riley?"

Riley was silent for a long moment, not meeting Ben's eyes. "Yes," he finally murmured, nodding just to prove it to himself. "For Dad."

Ben sighed. "All right. Then I'll take you."

Xxxxxxxxxx

The ride to the funeral home was a silent one. It was almost a relief when Ben pulled into the parking lot, and both friends quickly climbed out of the car just to escape the tense atmosphere. Riley led the way to the door, but turned around to face the older man with a forced smile on his face when they reached them. "Look, Ben. I appreciate you bringing me here, but you don't have to come in with me," he said.

But Ben wasn't going to let him escape so easily. "And let you handle this alone with your brother?" he replied, going past him and entering the building. "Not a chance."

Riley didn't even get the chance to protest, so he sighed and followed Ben inside. The older man's eyes traveled around the spacious, chandelier-lit room with a sigh. The last time he had been in Andy's Funeral Home was when he had gone with his dad to plan the funeral for his grandfather. All of the memories were beginning to come back to him now…

A young woman who appeared to not care that she was there was sitting behind an oak-carved desk, loudly chewing gum as she filed her nails. Riley slowly approached the desk, having to clear his throat to get her attention. After a moment, the woman cast her eyes up to him in annoyance. "Yes?"

"Um, hi," Riley muttered uncomfortably. Why did he have to be the first one there? "I'm here to help with the planning of a funeral for Jeremy Poole."

The woman, named Cathy judging my the name badge on her shirt, reluctantly set down her nail file and opened a notebook beside her, searching through it until she reached the P's. "Dustin or Riley Poole?" she asked without looking up.

"Riley."

"Have a seat," Cathy said, making a small note before shutting the notebook again and leaning back in her chair. "Andy will be with you shortly."

"Thank you." Riley turned away from the desk and walked to the opposite wall and sat down in one of the metal chairs. Ben sat down in the chair next to him. "She's friendly," the younger man muttered, loud enough for only Ben to hear as he put his head into his hands.

A sympathetic smile crossed the treasure hunter's face. "Andy is much nicer," he reassured him. "Cathy wasn't here last time I was."

Riley slowly raised his gaze to meet his friend's eyes. "You came to this funeral home too?" he asked.

"Yes," Ben told him quietly. "For my grandfather."

Before Riley could reply, the door to the funeral home opened again, and two men entered. The first had dark hair similar to Riley's in color that fell to his chin. His eyes were such a light blue that they were almost gray in color, and they felt as cold as ice. Ben instantly knew who this man was, and the flicker of an almost fearful respect in his best friend's eyes confirmed it.

Cathy sat straight up in her chair when the man approached, seeming to recognize that he had some kind of authority. "Yes?"

"I'm here to plan the funeral of Jeremy Poole," the man said simply.

"Dustin Poole?" Cathy asked after she flipped through the notebook again.

"Yes."

"Have a seat, Sir. Andy will be with you shortly."

Dustin turned from the desk, and a small smile appeared on his face when he saw his younger brother. "Riley," he addressed cheerfully.

Riley nodded, not able to meet the other man's eyes as he muttered, "Dustin."

Ben looked at the techie with concern. Riley wasn't a weak person, he could stand up to anyone, but Dustin had such a dominant, overpowering aura that the younger man must have bent to his every will. That's when he noticed that the older Poole's eyes were on him.

"Who's your friend, Riley?"

"My best friend, Benjamin Gates," Riley answered. "I see you brought Nick with you." His gaze had landed on the blond-haired man standing behind his brother.

Dustin's cold eyes seemed to brighten at hearing the sound of the older man's name. "Ben Gates? The Ben Gates?" he said with a laugh. "The one who discovered the treasure of the Templar Knights and the lost City of Gold?"

"Yes," Ben replied as he got to his feet so that he could stand eye-to-eye with Dustin. "And you're Riley's brother?"

"I am," Dustin told him, shaking the treasure hunter's hand. "I must say that it is an honor to meet you."

"Pleasure's mine," Ben muttered without much feeling, able to tell that this man and Riley were nothing alike.

Then, a door near them opened and an older, slightly rotund man stepped out. "Dustin and Riley Poole?"

"Yes, that would be us," Dustin said, approaching the man while dragging Riley along behind him.

"Ah, yes. Pleasure to meet you," the man replied, warmly shaking hands with the older Poole first and then the younger. "My name is Andy, and I hope that I will be able to help you boys through this difficult time in the most organized way possible. Please, step inside my office."

Dustin nodded and entered the room, Riley casting one last almost terrified look to Ben before following his brother. Andy was about to shut the door when the treasure hunter lunged at the door and stopped him. The older man looked back at him, startled. "I'm sorry, Sir, but this meeting is for the Poole brothers only," Andy stated. "If you are not immediate family, you may not come in."

"I'm close enough," Ben whispered. "My best friend is in there, and he needs me now. Besides, don't you remember me? I'm Benjamin Gates."

Andy studied him for a long moment before a smile of recognition came over his face. "Ah, yes. I remember you now, Ben," he replied cheerfully. "You were here with your father Patrick to arrange the funeral for your grandfather." He sighed and lowered his voice. "I normally don't do this, but the younger man looks like he's on the verge of tears. Come on in."

Ben smiled with relief, following the funeral home owner inside the smaller room that he had been in years before. Riley's eyes were on the door curiously, wondering what the commotion had been, and when he saw Ben enter the room, a great weight seemed to lift off his shoulders as he sighed with relief. Ben smiled encouragingly and sat down beside him.

The next hour drew by so incredibly slowly that it felt like an eternity. Dustin and Riley had finally agreed with help from Andy the location that the funeral was going to be held was at the small church that the brothers had attended when they were children, their father was going to be buried in the churchyard behind it, and how many people they were going to invite. Since their father wouldn't have wanted a big funeral, they finally decided that they would only invite family that was in town or in the surrounding area. Finally, the meeting seemed to be drawing to a close.

"Did our father leave Riley or I anything?" Dustin suddenly asked. Riley and Ben both glanced at him.

Andy frowned. "I'm afraid that I don't know that," he answered, leaning forward on the desk. "Your father's will has not yet been located, if he left one at all. I will have your lawyer alert you if anything is found."

Dustin nodded without saying a word, seeming to be disappointed by the answer.

"Thank you for your time, gentlemen," Andy said, getting to his feet and shaking hands with both Dustin and Riley again. "I will do my best to make sure that your father's last wishes are met. But, I would like to have a word with Riley alone for a moment."

"Thank you." Dustin gave a strange, unreadable look to his younger brother as he rose to his feet. Then, he gave Andy one last look before he left the office and shut the door behind him. Ben did not leave Riley's side.

"Alone is alone, Mr. Gates," Andy muttered when he saw that he wasn't leaving.

"Anything you want to say to me you can say in front of Ben," Riley snapped before Ben could say a word.

Andy's eyes moved from Riley to Ben and back before he sighed. "All right," he said heavily, opening a drawer of his desk. "I don't think that you remember me, Riley, but I was a friend of your father for years. I am the only one he trusted to give you this."

The older man pulled out an envelope that was yellowed with age and sealed with what appeared to be some kind of crest. Riley took it carefully and looked it over, wondering what it was. "You cannot tell anyone that you have that in your possession outside of Ben, not even Dustin," the funeral home owner continued.

"I won't," Riley replied, looking up at the man with confusion. "But what is it?"

Andy slowly shook his head. "That I do not know. But it must have been important since it was meant for your eyes only."

Ben nodded when his younger friend didn't respond. "Thank you very much," he said as he stood up. "Come on, Riley. Let's go home."

"You're welcome."

Riley got to his feet and slowly followed his best friend. Then, he turned and looked at the elderly man one last time as he hid the envelope before he shut the door behind him.

A/N: As I said before, I'm writing more elements into the story now. What's in the envelope? You'll have to wait to find out. Hopefully, I can get the next chapter up soon. The more reviews I get, the faster I'll update. Thanks for reading! Your reviews are much appreciated!